The Japan Labor Flash
No.43
Email Journal August 1, 2005
Statistical Reports
Main Labor Economic Indicators
Current Topics
Denki Rengo Sees Wages and Balance between Work and Personal Life
as its Core Demands in Next Spring Joint Labor Negotiations
Household Expenditure on Education Increases as Birthrate Declines
Public Policies
Measures Proposed in Response to Forecasted Social and Demographic
Changes
Average Household Income Drops for 7th Consecutive Year
Public Policies
Japanese Bank Pays Bonus to Part-Timers for the First Time
More People Go to Beer Gardens with Business Associates
Public Policies
The Old-New Asbestos Question Returns to the Limelight
Statistical Reports
-Main Labor Economic Indicators-
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/estatis/eshuyo/200508/index.htm
Current Topics
-Denki Rengo Sees Wages and Balance between Work and Personal Life
as its Core Demands in Next Spring Joint Labor Negotiations-
The annual conferences of labor unions have reached a peak at
this time of year as usual. On July 7 and 8, the Japanese Electrical
Electronic & Information Union (Denki Rengo) held its regular
convention in Nagano city, and confimed that it would focus attention
on three factors as the foundation of its struggle for improvements
in general labor conditions (shunto) from 2006 on: (1) "improvements
in income" in the form of increased wages as well as lump-sum and
other payments; (2) "improvements in employment" such as raising
the retirement age above 60 and career development assistance; and
(3) "balance between work and personal life" such as measures
to
shorten total working hours and offer flexible work schedules.
Specific details of demands to be made will be hammered out in the
coming month and put before the central committee in January 2006.
Denki Rengo also confirmed that it would increase the number of
union organizers from the current three to 10 or more for the sake
of expanding its union membership - which is currently 250,000
less than the past recorded peak - to 750,000 by 2010.
President Sasamori of the Japanese Trade Union Confederation
(Rengo) stated in his speech as a guest at the conference that
president Koga of Denki Rengo is a candidate to succeed him as
Rengo's president.
-Household Expenditure on Education Increases as Birthrate Declines-
According to this week's indices published on July 4 by the Cabinet
Office, expenditure on education per household has been increasing
since fiscal year 2002 despite the downward trend in the number of
children. The Office concluded that the increased educational outlay
is attributable to "a rising rate of advancement to four-year
universities due to a drop in the number of two-year colleges,"
"a rise in the proportion of pupils and students at private primary,
junior-high and high schools," and "an increase in expenditure
on
supplementary schooling, such as pre-school education and cramming
schools for primary and junior-high school students".
Public Policies
-Measures Proposed in Response to Forecasted Social and Demographic
Changes-
In mid-July, Mr. Takenaka, State Minister in charge of economic
and fiscal policy, submitted to the Cabinet the fiscal year 2005
Annual Report on the Japanese Economy and Public Finance (the economic
and fiscal White Paper). The report states that the Japanese economy
has undoubtedly emerged from the post-bubble era, and emphasizes
the importance of realizing "small government" and allowing
the
potential of the private sector to come into full bloom. It also
highlights the importance of forecasting the possible impacts of
demographic changes - that is, the overall decline in the population
and the retirement of baby-boomers - on the consumption and savings
behavior of households and the labor market. These forecasts will
then allow both the government and private sector to plan in advance
measures to address these issues in the future.
At the same time, the Study Group for Employment Policy of the
Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (a private study group of
the Employment Security Bureau) published a report in which it
estimated that the labor force (the number of people aged 15 or
above who are either employed or looking for a job) will have
declined to 55.95 million in 2030, 10.5 million less than in 2004.
This will occur unless effective measures are taken to deal with
the increase in unemployment among young people. The report points
out the need to tackle problems such as the shortage of employment
opportunities for young people and the current situation in which
it is difficult for women to continue working while managing their
childcare responsibilities.
-Average Household Income Drops for 7th Consecutive Year-
According to the results of the 2004 National Livelihood Survey
published on July 6 by the Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare,
the average household income in 2003 was 5.797 million yen, which
marks the seventh consecutive drop since 1996, when the average was
6.612 million yen. The survey also found that the proportion of
households which responded that their finances were "tight"
accounted
for 55.8 percent (23 percent were "very tight" and 33 percent
were
"somewhat tight"); this figure has increased since 2001 and
now
marks a record high since 1986 when the survey was initiated. The
average income of elderly households (65 years of age and above)
was 2.909 million yen, with those whose only income source was public
pension accounting for 64.2 percent.
US$=\112（August 1, 2005）
Public Policies
-Japanese Bank Pays Bonus to Part-Timers for the First Time-
For the first time a Japanese banking institution, Resona Group,
began to pay bonuses to their 9,000 part-time employees in mid-July.
The part-timers eligible for the bonus payments are door-to-door
sales staff of products related to insurance and deposits in foreign
currencies, most of them females in their 40s or above. In accordance
with individual sales records, bonuses were given to around 60 percent
of these part-time sales staff. The average amount was 70,000 to
80,000 yen, though some were paid more than one million yen.
Resona Group has been developing further its merit system since
last September by adopting a performance-based wage system for part
-time employees. It has also launched a plan to raise the proportion
of part-timers to half of all employees. The payment of bonuses to
part-timers forms the most recent step in the implementation of the
group's policy of strengthening the functions and role of part-timers.
(Nihon Keizai Shimbun, July)
-More People Go to Beer Gardens with Business Associates-
The "Alcohol and Daily Life Research Institute" of Kirin Brewery
Co. Ltd. has carried out an internet survey on public perceptions
of beer gardens. It was aimed at people aged 20 and above across
the country, with valid replies totaling 7,832. The survey has
produced the following findings.
Asked with whom they go to beer gardens, the largest proportion
of respondents, 76 percent, replied "intimates such as friends or
family members," compared to 53 percent who replied "superiors,
subordinates or someone else from the office, or some other business
contact." Compared to the survey results of last year, the proportion
of the latter group increased by 7 percentage points.
An average beer-garden customer spends about 3,700 yen each time.
When looking at age, it was found that respondents in their 20s spend
the most money at beer gardens, 3,900 yen on average.
(Yomiuri Shimbun, July)
Public Policies
-The Old-New Asbestos Question Returns to the Limelight-
Asbestos-linked news is making the headlines these days.
The spate of recent news began with an announcement in late June
by Kubota Corp., a machinery maker, that 79 workers - employees,
former employees, and workers in its trading companies who had worked
at a factory manufacturing asbestos-related products - had died of
diseases believed to be linked to asbestos between 1978 and 2004.
Additionally, the company will reportedly pay sympathy money to three
residents near the manufacturing plant who had developed mesothelioma,
a type of lung cancer.
Continued on;
http://www.jil.go.jp/english/archives/emm/2005/no.43/43_si.html
